I did put in a bid for the set on the auction yesterday, and when they
get here, I'll give them a quick evaluation. It's possible that the
steel might be so bad that they are unusable (they are designed for
use by Elementary School students, after all).

But if they look useable for adult beginners too, then I'll perhaps
give them a call to see if we might get them into the Mall ...

Once again the Baren members have come through with their willingness to share their knowledge. thanks to everyone who posted here and to me personally. This has been so helpful.
Mike - I'm not sure who wants to come play more - me or my husband. He wants to mechanize me really bad!
Azusa paper - I know it's rather lightweight but I'm using it for a couple reasons. A. It's what I have. B. It only has to be laid down once.
I'm doing something rather experimental (for me) so I don't need a kento. I'm just lining it up with the corner of the wood. This project is a collaborative one with a glass artist and will be an installation piece. I'd love to explain more but I'm not sure how it's all going to work until I do it.

I just have to tell that I am all registered for the 1st International Moku Hanga Conference happening June 2011 in Kyoto. If anyone else is going I'd love to hear. I look forward to meeting people whose work I have admired for so long and being in the "motherland" of moku hanga! The conference demonstrations & workshops sound so interesting, as do the optional programs, especially the papermaking. I can't wait to do some brush and tool shopping. My family realizes we won't have heat or food next winter because of the trip but are still fully behind me!

At Graphic Chemical & Ink Company, we are painfully aware of the impact of the elementson our day-to-day operations. Excessive heat in the summertime means that certain products cannot be shipped with any certainty that they'll be usable when they get there. In the winter, the obvious problem is the cold and/or snow. As I sit here writing this entry, we have accumulated 20+" of snow since yesterday afternoon!

Those of youwho know me are well aware of my overused mantra- I will never, ever complain about the heat, because I reserve the right to whine like a baby about the cold! Well, if ever there was a time to whine it is now. Actually, I've been really surprised at the news coverage of today's storm activity - for the most part the media has gone directly to full panic mode. We've had several worse storms in our recent past, and after the shellacking that the East Coast has had since the holidays, we've got very little to complain about.

In a more perfect world, Susan and I would be very much as you see us above, blissfully walking a beach in Hawaii. In this day of increased technology, who'd even know if we were there? Sadly, we can't get there in the near future. The second semester rush has, thankfully, knocked our socks off. We are shipping record numbers of packages and falling behind at the same time. It's a good place to be for a short period of time - a very short period of time.

Many of our vendors are slower to ship than they've been for years. One or two are having a tough go of it, and others are just working leaner than in the past. Rest assured that we are trying to stay on top of inventory, so you'll get what you want when you want it.

We're working six days a week, with a few of us putting in seven days to keep up. Please keep in mind, however, that we are a manufacturing plant. If you place an order online on Friday afternoon late or over the weekend, we won't even see it until Monday morning. We're not a 24/7 operation...and frankly, we couldn't keep our prices as low as they are if we did maintain those kind of hours.

So back to operating from Hawaii (or any other warm weather climate for that matter), we'll begin taking offers of free places to stay in exchange for our charming personalities for a few months. Free meals and Wi-Fi would be a plus, reasonable temperatures and minimal precipitation are important. I don't want much - I want it all. As my Mother used to say, "who more richly deserves it than me?"

I don't want this to sound one sided. I am perfectly willing - no anxious - to provide a similar experience for anyone who will invite us to share their warm weather experience. In fairness, my charming wife pointed out that my sparkling personality wouldn't be enough to swing this deal. In light of her superior knowledge in the area, I am offering a swap. How great would it be to start your Chicago experience with drinks
[Long item has been trimmed at this point. The full blog entry can be viewed here]

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